STRAY FOX [Kita Shinsuke x Reader]

Chapter 14 - Stay

A loud thud. That was what Kita and Yumie heard just as they were sitting silently across each other. The grandmother and the grandson exchanged looks for a second before the latter hasten to go to the source of the sound, which was his room.

"F/n-san!" he called out as he opened the door without any hesitation. There, he saw the girl sitting awkwardly on the floor while groaning. "What happened?" he asked as he approached her.

F/n let out a small laugh as her fingers reached to ease up his furrowed eyebrows. "Don't worry, Shin-chan. Just stayed too long in the bath and felt a bit dizzy, that's all," she told him. Despite her words, it didn't ease his concern towards her and she noticed it. "Can you get me a glass of water, please?" she asked of him to somehow divert his attention.

He nodded in response. "I'll be right back," he said before leaving his room, passing by Yumie as she made his way to his room to check on the girl.

"Are you alright, dear?" the old woman asked.

"I'm fine, Granny," she replied and told her the same thing that she had said to the captain earlier.

When Kita arrived, he gently gave her the glass of water. Right after she took it from his hands, he went to grab the futon from the drawer and quietly prepared it on behalf of her.

"You should take some rest, F/n-san," he told her as soon as he was finished and she nodded in response.

Slowly, the girl did as she was told, slipping under the covers and got herself into a comfortable position. Granny tucked her in like how she once did when Kita was younger.

"Thank you, Granny. Thank you, Shin-chan," she told them, appreciating their gestures.

With a warm smile, Yumie told her, "Sleep well, F/n-chan," before heading out of the room to let her rest while Kita decided to stay for a bit longer.

"You don't have to look after me, Shin-chan. Just one good night sleep and I'm good as brand new," she told him as the tone of her voice was not as energetic as she hoped it would be.

She was always like this, trying to look cheerful even though she was not. It may just be as simple as being tired due to the dizziness caused by staying too long in the bath, but Kita wished that she could let him see it, to depend on him at least for something as little as this.

As if she had read his thoughts, F/n gently went and touched his hand. "I'm a little worn out and I'm pretty sure that I'll fall asleep in no time. Will you stay here until then?" she softly asked him.

"I'll stay for as long as you want me to," he responded, his smile assuring her of keeping his word.

With that, the stray fox reciprocated his smile with her own before closing her eyes. Kita studied her, observing how the features of her face started to soften. It gave him relief, seeing that F/n was finally letting herself rest.

Kita didn't know how much time passed as he found himself dozed off. Blinking to re-orient himself, he realized that F/n was sleeping soundly, and that it was time for him to go. Not wanting to cause any disturbance, he slowly tried to slip his hand off F/n's.

"No," the stray fox immediately responded upon feeling Kita's hand slowly pulling away from her, making him stop his actions and look at her with wide eyes.

She then let out a gasp upon realizing how she reacted, how exposed her want was out of the open, how instinctive it was.

With that, the captain gave her a gentle smile as his other hand moved, patting her head softly. "Wait for me, then, F/n-san," he told her before he stood up.